Dr. Stuart Burgess, the chairman of the Rural Communities Commission and the Government’s Rural Advocate who is to present a report on the rural economy in England says the updating communication links for the remote areas in rural England holds the key for securing future economic viability for these areas. According to him, most parts in rural England are not linked by communication technologies like mobile network or broadband. Even if one gets these facilities, the coverage and service quality are of sub-standards.

Regarding the availability of broadband, he said in an interview with The Times,
“Broadband is still not accessible and, even where it is, the quality is questionable. For the modern rural economy to develop and grow you need good internet access. We also need to improve the mobile phone coverage.”

As far as the mobile networks are concerned, he said the mobile network coverage aims at providing coverage to a large number of customers instead of providing better coverage area possible. As a result the remote areas in rural UK with lower population do not get access to the network.

Dr. Burgess who urged the immediate participation of entrepreneurs in setting up of the infrastructure that can offer these facilities recommends two solutions for this problem. First, the telecommunication operators should ensure that their networks can provide coverage of these areas so that more rural customers can be benefited. Secondly, private investors in rural areas should be encouraged to setup these facilities by introducing incentives for these entrepreneurs.

Regarding such investments in rural areas, he commented:
“The current investment plans of the main communications providers indicate that many rural businesses and communities could find themselves left behind,”